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Matchday 24 - Bulletins

vor 2 Stunden

Philipp Lahm is back in team training with Bayern after a months-long spell on the sidelinesHeung-Min Son struck a brace as Leverkusen beat Paderborn 3-1 in the final encounter of Matchday 24Franck Ribery (r.) and FC Bayern extended their lead at the top of the Bundesliga to 11 points last weekendBorussia Dortmund saw their four-game winning streak ended in a goalless draw at Hamburg, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang going closest for the guestsHuub Stevens' Stuttgart were forced to settle for a goalless draw at home to fellow strugglers Hertha Berlin on Friday

Cologne - Bayer 04 Leverkusen extended their winning run to four with victory over SC Paderborn in the final fixture of Matchday 24, while FC Bayern München moved 11 points clear at the top of the standings on Saturday.

As ever, we're bringing you all the reaction from the latest weekend of Bundesliga football.

Monday 9 March

Royal Blues realistic Roberto Di Matteo knows he and his team have a mountain to climb after their first-leg defeat, but although they are down, they are not out - yet. You can catch our match preview here, but we'll be back with more live updates on Friday when we build up to Matchday 25 and Stuttgart's trip to Leverkusen. We'll see you on the flip-side.

Schalke in Madrid The Royal Blues are in the Spanish capital ahead of their fixture with Real Madrid in the Champions League tomorrow. Coach Roberto Di Matteo has already held is pre-match press conference, and had the following to say:

#RDM: It&#39;s going to be very difficult but we&#39;ll give it our all. #s04

Sommer unfazed Gladbach goalkeeper Yann Sommer was likewise keen to look on the bright side after his team let a two-goal lead slip away to Mainz on Saturday, addressing his followers on Twitter: "Dear fans, sometimes you just have games like the one in Mainz. Now we need to put it behind us and keep going on Sunday at Borussia Park."

#NeverGiveUp Paderborn may have lost five out of seven matches since the turn of the year, and currently find themselves in the relegation play-off spot, but defender Uwe Hünemeier is determined to stay positive. "The only way to do things is to get up more often than you're knocked down," he said on Twitter, accompanying his rallying cry with the hashtags #NeverGiveUp and #KeepGoing.

As ever, we want to hear from you following the latest round of action. Head to our homepage to choose your favourite from the three-man Player of the Week shortlist, then check out the Goal of the Week contenders in the video below and vote for the best strike here. The winners will be announced tomorrow!

We have heaps of videos from Matchday 24 for you to enjoy. As well as individual highlights of all nine Bundesliga games, we have exclusive post-match video interviews with numerous stars, including Kevin De Bruyne, Xabi Alonso, Manuel Neuer, Bas Dost, Andre Schürrle, Max Meyer and many more. So just head to our WATCH page, sit back and hear what some of the game's biggest names had to say.

'We have to win, no matter how' Bayern stars Manuel Neuer and Rafinha, meanwhile, are already looking ahead to Wednesday's Champions League last-16 second leg clash against Shakhtar Donetsk:

New pitch for Hertha Hertha Berlin have just sent out this tweet showing the Olympiastadion with a brand new pitch, which will stage its first Bundesliga game on Saturday when the capital club host Schalke 04.

Köln’s Polish international Pawel Olkowski faces an indefinite spell on the sidelines after bruising his left ankle in yesterday’s entertaining 4-2 victory over Frankfurt, the promoted club have confirmed. Olkowski's team-mate Kevin Wimmer, meanwhile, has been banned for one match after seeing red against the Eagles.

A welcome sight Bayern München captain Philipp Lahm (c.) returned to full training today where the 2014 World Cup winner teamed up with his club-mates. Read the full story here!

Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung puts Ruhr district rivals Schalke and Dortmund under the microscope after the two sides experienced quite different post-Revierderby fates. “Di Matteo gives his young talents a chance, and the Royal Blues fans love it,” writes the local newspaper after Schalke’s Hoffenheim win, while commentating on BVB's draw in Hamburg: “Dortmund lost two points on Saturday, their below-par performance leaving sporting director Michael Zorc understandably disappointed.”

There was no doubt about Dante’s disappointment after the Brazilian centre-back was substituted for forward Robert Lewandowski half an hour into Bayern’s 3-1 success at Hannover, but Süddeutsche Zeitung quotes Pep Guardiola explaining the change was purely “of tactical nature. And [Dante] knows it.” Sports magazine kicker, meanwhile, said after the defending champions went 11 points clear at the top of the standings: “Bayern are well on their way to clinching the title.”

Schalke heading to Madrid Roman Neustädter and Co are about to fly off to the Spanish capital where they will be hoping to overturn a 2-0 deficit in the Champions League last-32 second leg at holders Real Madrid tomorrow.

Ujah's apology An emotional Anthony Ujah has apologised to Hennes, Köln's honorary goat and club mascot, for a rather over-exuberant celebration after his goal against Frankfurt. "He's been my best friend ever since I've moved to Cologne," the Nigeria striker said. Hennes forgives you, Anthony...

Happy Monday! After notching only five goals in their previous 11 home games, 1. FC Köln shot four past Eintracht Frankfurt yesterday, the promoted side's victory giving them a crucial three points in their battle against relegation and a good start into the new week.

Sunday 8 March

Aubameyang at the barbers

What might Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang's hair look like by the time that Dortmund-Hoffenheim cup tie rolls around on 7 or 8 March? While you mull that over, we'll bid you adieu, but don't forget to catch up with us again tomorrow, when we'll have more reaction from the weekend that was and build-up to the midweek action in the Champions League and Europa League. Ta-ra.

DFB Cup draw made The other big news from today was the draw for the quarter-finals of the DFB Cup, which was made this evening and there's no doubting the tastiest of the four ties. Dortmund face Hoffenheim, Wolfsburg entertain Freiburg and minnows Bielefeld take on Gladbach, but the standout game comes from the BayArena, where Leverkusen host Bayern.

Bayer back on course After a weak first-half performance, Bayer 04 showed their ruthless side at Paderborn to record a somewhat flattering 3-0 win and move back into the UEFA Champions League places. Here's our match report.

's equaliser in Mainz's 2-2 draw at Gladbach on Saturday was the Japanese international striker's first goal in 754 minutes - the second longest barren spell of his Bundesliga career. "He played like he trained," said 05ers head coach Martin Schmidt. "He earned it."

Eager Eagles Eintracht Frankfurt travel to Köln this afternoon looking for only their third away league win of the season. The Billy Goats, meanwhile, have own just once on home soil since returning to the Bundesliga last summer.

Werder Bremen boss Viktor “Victory” Skripnik (r.) was a happy man indeed after the Green-Whites returned to winning ways in Freiburg following defeats both in the Bundesliga and the DFB Cup last week. “We showed a great reaction, but we also played good football. [Franco Di Santo’s winning] goal was pure class.”

Coach Roberto Di Matteo was full of praise for Max Meyer (l.) after the 19-year-old Schalke gem struck twice in the Royal Blues’ 3-1 success at home to fellow-European hopefuls Hoffenheim. “The whole team played well, but Max stood out today. He was key to our win.” The victory saw Schalke move into fourth ahead of today’s set of games.

Despite seeing Dortmund's four-game winning streak come to an end on Saturday, Mats Hummels seemed in positive spirits after notching a draw at struggling Hamburg. "The result's good to maintain the gap below us," he said, despite admitting that "it's too little to climb any higher." Find out more in our post-match quotes.

Pep shifts focus to Shakhtar Bayern were made to work hard for the points in an eventual 3-1 win away to Hannover 96, but now that's out of the way, Pep Guardiola's men can put all their energy into Wednesday's winner-takes-all meeting with FC Shakhtar Donetsk in the last-16 of the UEFA Champions League...

Good morning Bundesliga fans old and new. League leaders FC Bayern München were the big winners on Saturday afternoon, but there were also important victories for FC Augsburg, SV Werder Bremen and FC Schalke 04. As usual, we'll be bringing you all the reaction to the weekend's action as well as the build-up to today's fixtures. Eintracht Frankfurt travel to Köln, before SC Paderborn 07 look to stop the rot at home to in-form Bayer 04 Leverkusen. Don't go anywhere!

Saturday 7 March

We're winding down our Bundesliga coverage for today, but make sure you check back with us tomorrow for more reaction to today's games. Then, in the afternoon, Frankfurt and goal-machine Alex Meier face Köln, before Leverkusen round off the matchday with a trip to promoted side Paderborn. Bis dann!

Discover what some of the key players in the 2-2 draw between Mainz and Gladbach made of the game, including World Cup winner Christoph Kramer, Foals keeper Yann Sommer and Mainz goalscorer Johannes Geis. Click here for more.

Mainz fightback The evening game was a humdinger at the Coface Arena, as Mainz fought back from 2-0 down to secure a 2-2 draw at Gladbach, with Shinji Okazaki scoring his first goal in eight games.

Rocking Robben How about this for a statistic: Arjen Robben has now featured in 100 Bundesliga wins and it's taken him just 126 matches to do so. That makes him the fastest player to reach a century of wins in Bundesliga history.

FC Bayern are now 11 points clear at the top of the league once again following their 3-1 win win at Hannover and Wolfsburg's 1-0 defeat at Augsburg. Thomas Müller bagged a brace to help down the Lower Saxons, and after the game revealed how Ron-Robert Zieler had failed with some mind games before his penalty that made it 2-1:

Set fair With the clock ticking down towards another exciting afternoon of Bundesliga action, pictures from around the grounds are filtering through and it looks like the weather is playing its part in providing perfect conditions up and down Germany (note the 'Royal Blue' sky above the Veltins Arena).

You can catch some of these in action this afternoon, but if you want to find out more about Pierre-Emile Höjbjerg, Davie Selke (r.), Marc Stendera, Johannes Geis and Loris Karius, take a look at our report on the Bundesliga's rising stars.

Still to come Just to refresh your memories of what is still to come this weekend:

There is a distinct European feel about this afternoon's Bundesliga action with the ties between Augsburg and Wolfsburg, Schalke and Hoffenheim and Freiburg and Bremen all carrying a European flavour. Find out more by reading our round-up preview of the 15:30 CET kick-offs.

Wondering how to catch the thrills and spills of Bundesliga action this afternoon and tomorrow? It's simple! You have three ways: Click here to find which is your local television broadcaster. Alternatively, two more games are broadcast live on Bundesliga radio here. Finally, you can follow all of the action as and when it happens via regular Twitter updates here. So no excuses for missing even a second.

Friday 6 March

We'll leave you with some post-match reaction from Stuttgart, where VfB have drawn 0-0 with Hertha. Find out what the Swabians' skipper Christian Gentner (r.) and the other protagonists had to say by clicking on the link above. Join us tomorrow as we look ahead to Saturday's Matchday 24 action. Bye for now!

Hertha Berlin held rock-bottom VfB Stuttgart to a 0-0 draw at the Mercedes-Benz-Arena on Friday evening - a result that does little to help either sides' relegation troubles. Chances were few and far between in Matchday 24's opening clash, although Nico Schulz, who was sent off in the dying stages, could have won it for Hertha with a shot that trickled just wide of the far post late on. Huub Stevens' side remain rooted to the foot of the Bundesliga standings.

Freiburg test This fixture would have been billed as a relegation six-pointer less than two months ago, but Viktor Skripnik's Bremen go into Saturday's clash with Freiburg closer to fourth place than 16th.

bundesliga.com looks ahead to three Matchday 24 encounters that could prove pivotal in the race for the European places. Schalke welcome Hoffenheim to the Veltins Arena, Freiburg host in-form Bremen and high-flying Wolfsburg travel to Augsburg. Click here for more...

"We're not putting unnecessary pressure on ourselves. We want to go into the game feeling good. We've got to have fun and be relaxed. There are phases when a success story is absent. How do you get out of it? Hard work. Internally it's about keeping our heads clear."

"We have fond memories of the 2-2 draw in Leverkusen earlier this season. The support of the fans gave us goosebumps. The atmosphere in training has been fantastic. At some point the deciding moment will arrive when we find the back of the net. I'm convinced that it will happen on Sunday."

Perfect preparation FC Bayern appear to be in jovial spirits after coming through their final training session ahead of their trip to Hanover on Saturday.

"We don't just want to put in one good performance, but rather two, three or even more. It's all about producing consistency. Even with all the difficulties and setbacks we're in the midst of a positive development. We're looking forward to the game and are convinced we'll have a good outing."

"Köln are a very uncomfortable opponent and their side took a lot of positives from their last encounter. The Billy Goats will set themselves up in a very compact manner and will keep things tight whilst looking to advance quickly. this game will not be easy to control."

Ilkay's silky skills German international Ilkay Gündogan has been in sensational form of late, playing an integral part in Borussia Dortmund's recent upswing and it seems his excellent control of the ball has filtered down onto the training pitch based on this trick shot into a rubbish bin.

Peter Stöger on...Eintracht Frankfurt's strengths 1. FC Köln do, however, boast a strong back line. Only the top five teams in the Bundesliga standings have conceded less goals than the Billy Goats in the current campaign, but Stöger was quick to outline exactly what his charges need to keep their eyes open for against the Eagles.

Peter Stöger on...Eintracht Frankfurt's vulnerability In his pre-match press conference, 1. FC Köln head coach Peter Stöger outlined where he felt his side could get at visitors Eintracht Frankfurt on Sunday afternoon. However, to capitalise on the Eagles' weaknesses, the Billy Goats will have to put an end to their poor form in front of goal which has seen them scoring at a rate of less than a goal a game in their last seven outings.

Stöger: "Frankfurt is a very potent offensive team, but have not quite found their footing on the defensive end yet." #effzeh#KOESGE

Double digits beckons Fresh from seeing a Katy Perry concert with Alvaro Dominguez, Borussia Mönchengladbach goalkeeper Yann Sommer is hoping he'll have the eye of the tiger when the Foals travel to Mainz on Saturday.

Lucien Favre on...1. FSV Mainz 05 After making a great start to the 2014/15 Bundesliga campaign, Mainz now find themselves just three points adrift of 17th-placed SC Freiburg, but Gladbach boss Lucien Favre is not taking anything for granted.

#Favre: #M05 were superb in Hoffenheim. We have to bring our &#39;A&#39; game and want to pick up points without fail. #fohlenelf#M05BMG

Lucien Favre on...squad selection Ahead of Borussia Mönchengladbach's away tie with 1. FSV Mainz 05 on Saturday evening, head coach Lucien Favre is keeping his cards close to his chest in terms of his squad choices. Alvaro Dominguez is the only player unavailable for selection.

Pep Guardiola on...winning titles "The Bundesliga title remains the most important. We're fighting to defend our titles and to win, but you need fire in your bellies to do that. The Bundesliga season will finish when it finishes and we have our hands on the Meisterschale. We can't drop our performances. Dost, Schürrle, De Bruyne and Caligiuri are all in great form."

Pep Guardiola on...thinking ahead "Tomorrow's encounter against Hannover is the most important game right now, we're not thinking about Shakhtar. You can't compare Hannover and Donetsk. Hannover are all about man marking and Donetsk cover the space. It's what I always say, I said it before Braunschweig as well and you saw why, but the next game is always the most important."

Pep Guardiola on...Medhi Benatia's fitness and form "When we play well I never spare a thought for our rhythm. My players are young, sleep and eat well. We perhaps were lacking rhythm in the game against Wolfsburg, but the only times we play poorly are when we don't cover ground. The strain professional footballers experience is all a mentality issue."

It's become somewhat commonplace, but featuring in a victory over Hannover 96 on Saturday would see Arjen Robben break the Bundesliga record for fastest time taken to reach 100 victories in the German top flight. This weekend's encounter would represent his 126th appearance.

It could have been a battle of Sweden's top two left backs, but with Mainz 05's Pierre Bengtsson out with the flu, the Swedish showdown with Gladbach's Oscar Wendt is off the table. The 26-year-old remains confident though: "We're strong at home. We won't talk before the match, that'll take place in the stadium."

Early bird gets the three points? That's what Hertha Berlin will be hoping. Pal Dardai's charges are getting in one final training session before their clash with VfB Stuttgart under the Friday night lights in an encounter between the two top-flight sides to have suffered the most defeats so far this season. Early bird...Hertha have already arrived at Stuttgart's stadium! 30 minutes of breaking a sweat.

For he's a jolly good fellow Having collected just two points from a possible 18 since the turn of the year, VfB Stuttgart's birthday boy Timo Werner will be hoping to celebrate turning 19 in style by helping his side pick up three potentially pivotal points against Hertha Berlin.

Pep faces the press FC Bayern München head coach Pep Guardiola will be answering questions from the assembled press at 11:30 CET/10:30 GMT so stay tuned for all the best snippets from the Spanish mastermind.

FC Bayern's 4-1 win over 1. FC Köln last weekend was the first time this season that summer signing Juan Bernat failed to make an appearance in a Bundesliga outing for the record titleholders. However, the Spaniard appears to be undeterred as he looks to win back his place for the trip to Hanover.

Leading the Bundesliga scoring charts with 17 goals to his name, Arjen Robben poses the biggest threat to Hannover 96, but Christian Schulz has a plan to keep the flying Dutchman quiet: "Taking him out of the game in one-on-one situations is impossible. We've got to try and keep him in check as much as possible and hope that he's not at his best."

Hannover 96 have come up with a novel approach to preparing for the visit of league leaders FC Bayern by completing a series of hand-holding exercises aimed at promoting close control and composure on the ball. "We want to play together as a team and maintain contact with our team-mates," explained head coach Tayfun Korkut.

Familiar faces Having previously played under Huub Stevens at Hertha Berlin, Pal Dardai is now set to go toe-to-toe with his former head coach as he looks to get one up on the Dutch tactician in a relegation six-pointer.

41 - @HerthaBSC manager Pal Dardai has made 41 BL appearances for the club under former Hertha manager Huub Stevens. Reunion. #VFBBSC

Hertha Berlin could move eight points clear of their hosts with a victory this evening. Hopefully left-back Marvin Plattenhardt and Co. got a good night's rest as the capital city side go in search of picking up back to back wins for the first time in the current campaign.

Today is a Bundesliga Matchday! Getting the 24th round of action in Germany's top flight kicked off, Hertha Berlin will be looking to get the better of bottom-of-the-table VfB Stuttgart, who are without a win in their last eight home games. Click here to read bundesliga.com's exclusive preview.

Thursday 5 March

That's all folks!

Our live Bundesliga updates have concluded for the day, but make sure you check back with us from Friday morning as the countdown to Matchday 24 begins in earnest. Stay tuned!

With Nuri Sahin already sidelined and Marco Reus a major doubt for Dortmund's trip to Hamburg on Saturday, the BVB faithful are hoping in-form attacker recovers from a back injury in time to play. "He's still not completely pain-free," said coach Jürgen Klopp. "But he was able to cycle yesterday and jog a bit."

may not be particularly well-known even to the most die-hard of Bundesliga fans, but the 19-year-old Eintracht Frankfurt midfielder is well on course to becoming a household name. Check out our exclusive video portrait for more on the supremely-gifted attacker.

Freshly laid Matches between Schalke and Hoffenheim are always entertaining affairs - the fixture averages three goals per game to date - and everything seems to be in place for another exciting spectacle when the sides meet on Saturday. Taking advantage of the retractable pitch at their Veltins Arena stadium, the Royal Blues have laid a pristine new turf in time for kick-off:

As part of our Interview of the Week series, we caught up with Japanese star ahead of Mainz's make or break meeting with high-flying Gladbach on Saturday evening. To discover what the 28-year-old thinks about his side's current plight, his own form and what it takes to succeed in the Bundesliga, click here.

Luiz Gustavo and Roberto Firmino have both been named in the Brazil squad for the Selecao's upcoming friendlies against France and Chile this month. Gustavo has been an integral part of a Wolfsburg side that is second in the Bundesliga, while Firmino has scored six goals and provided seven assists for Hoffenheim this term.

Roberto Di Matteo has admitted he has "a lot of thinking to do" ahead of the visit of Markus Gisdol's side. Die Knappen lost 3-0 to bitter rivals Dortmund last time out, but it was the manner of the loss at the Signal Iduna Park that has hurt Schalke fans the most. "I need to see what the best solution is," added the Italian.

After eight months on the sidelines with a muscle problem, Schalke youngster Leon Goretzka has been named in the Royal Blues squad for their match against Hoffenheim on Saturday. "I feel good at the moment and am ready to make my comeback," the 20-year-old said on Thursday. It’s a good feeling to be back on the pitch."

VfB Stuttgart centre-back Georg Niedermeier has been frank in his assessment of the clubs' clash with Hertha Berlin. "It's one of eleven finals," explained the 29-year-old. "We won't be relegated or saved after the Berlin game, but irrespective of that we've got to treat the game like a cup final."

Benatia in the final stretch

There was further good news for FC Bayern München after the club announced that centre-back Medhi Benatia had returned to first-team training. Head coach Pep Guardiola is unlikely to rush the Moroccan back into action, but it looks like it won't be long before he's back in contention.

Thiago and Holger Holger Badstuber is delighted to see Thiago Alcantara back in Bavaria as the 23-year-old midfielder continues his recovery from knee ligament troubles.

"I'm really hope that [Marco] Reus and [Pierre-Emerick] Aubameyang are fit in time to feature on Saturday. They're incredibly important players for us, even though we have several options to rotate up front."

"We've had some spectacular games against Hamburg. We want to pick up three immensely important points on the way to achieving our target. We're still in a precarious situation and are only concentrating ourselves on a relegation battle, but we have picked up some great wins in Hamburg in the past."

Kehl's up next Borussia Dortmund midfielder Sebastian Kehl is next to face the assembled press to share his pre-weekend opinions...

"The Borussia Dortmund team have the potential to be competing much further up the standings. Everybody is eagerly anticipating taking on BVB. Every player is up for it. The head coach is too! [Ivica Olic and Marcell Jansen] are returning with a lot of self-confidence and a positive outlook."

"We're playing against an absolutely top team, who are the best in the Bundesliga by some margin. We've got to be an uncomfortable opponent and break up FC Bayern's rhythm. I know that we haven't been that convincing on home soil of late, but we've got to make sure that changes this weekend."

Rolling quotes

The pre-match press conferences are coming thick and fast in the Bundesliga so stay tuned for all the best snippets from the men in charge in Germany's top flight.

Hannover's hard graft Hannover 96's squad have had their nose to the grind stone in anticipation of welcoming league leaders FC Bayern München to the HDI Arena on Saturday.

Schmidt's call to arms 1. FSV Mainz 05 head coach Martin Schmidt appeared to be in a bullish mood ahead of his side's league fixture against Borussia Mönchengladbach on Saturday evening. "With passion, courage and 100% commitment, we're also capable of taking something off of UEFA Champions League hopefuls like Gladbach"

"Ciro Immobile remains a part of our first-team plans. Issues with settling in are completely normal, but he’s always stayed sharp. He’s scored a couple of important goals for us, not just against Dresden, but in the Bundesliga as well. He’s making good progress in his development."

"Pierre-Emerick Aubameang will return to first-team training tomorrow at the very latest. Marco Reus’ bruise has, at present, discoloured most of his thigh so we’ll have to see what happened. It doesn’t look like Nuri Sahin is going to be fit in time. He’s still experiencing discomfort."

"It feels like we've got something to make up for in Hamburg because we've unnecessarily let points drop. I think Hamburg have taken enough points off of us in the last couple of years. We’re expecting a different outcome this time around, but it’s going to be a super intense encounter. HSV are a team that run a lot."

"We’ve had games in which we put in similar first-half performances to that which we produced against Schalke, but then we didn’t have the necessary power. That’s not the case anymore. Every successful experience, both big and small, has done us a world of good in the second half of the season so far."

Say cheese! With their place in the DFB Cup quarter finals booked, FC Bayern München appear to be in jovial spirits ahead of their Matchday 24 clash with a Hannover 96 side who are currently struggling for form.

Set to miss out on Friday having undergone an operation on his left knee, Hertha's Julian Schieber is confident his team-mates can get the job done in his stead. "Every game is extremely important.," the 26-year-old told herthabsc.de. "I'm convinced that we'll pick up points. We've got a super squad and I have full faith in the lads."

Ray of hope for Stuttgart Historically speaking bottom-of-the-table Stuttgart have reason to believe that they could end their run of eight home games without a win on Friday night. Three points is a must for Huub Stevens' charges, who could fall further adrift at the foot of the table should they not emerge victorious.

Next Match on Friday vs. @HerthaBSC. The stats history for games in Stuttgart, 16 wins, 8 draws & 5 defeats for #VfB. Goal difference 58:23

Hertha Berlin coach Pal Dardai, who has presided over two wins in four games so far at the club, has also been speaking to the media ahead of Friday night's relegation six-pointer. "We're optimistic going into the Stuttgart game," said the Hungarian, referring to last week's 1-0 home win over FC Augsburg. "Everyone could see how important that win was."

Dardai: it&#39;s been a short week, but everyone could see how important that win was, there&#39;s a good feeling in the team

Huub Stevens was the first Bundesliga coach to meet the media and discuss the upcoming Matchday 24 action. He insisted his side are "concentrating" on Friday night's relegation battle with Hertha Berlin, reporting "good impressions in training", which he now wants to see reproduced on the field.

Stevens: 'We're concentrating on what is important - and that is preparing for the game against Hertha'.

Hello and welcome to the latest round of bundesliga.com's updates ahead of Matchday 24. If you want to keep on top of everything which is happening in and around Germany's top flight this weekend, make this your first port of call.

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